Friday, January 15, 2016

Aclaimed on both stage and screen as an actor and director, the great Alan Rickman passed away yesterday at the age of 69 from cancer.

His acting career had eventually begun after his original success in the field of graphic design, and even then he first entered the acting profession as a dresser for Sir Ralph Richarson and Sir Nigel Hawthorne. His distinctive voice and mannerisms soon made him a standout in such films as Die Hard; Quigley Down Under; Truly, Madly, Deeply; Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves; Sense and Sensibility; Michael Collins; Galaxy Quest; Love Actually and perhaps what will be viewed as his signature role of Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films.

The Catacombs extends its sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans. A sad loss of such a talented man!

How it all began ....

In 1933, publishers at Eastern Color Press, intent to make better use of their printing equipment (which frequently sat idle between jobs), came up with the idea of printing an 8-page comic section that could be folded down from the large broadsheet to a smaller 9-inch by 12-inch format. The result was the first modern comic book. Containing reprints of newspaper comic strips, this experimental comic book titled "Funnies On Parade" was given away for free. It proved so popular that the following year Eastern published "Famous Funnies" and took the bold step of selling the comic for ten cents through chain stores. The enterprise was a smashing success and Eastern began churning out numerous reprints on a monthly basis. Other publishers, eager to get in on the profits, jumped on the bandwagon and the comic book industry was born!